Old Cars from a Town in Uruguay

I just returned from a trip to Uruguay to visit my son in Montevideo. We took a day to go up the Rio de la Plata to visit Colonia, the oldest town in Uruguay, across from Buenos Aires and fought over by the Spanish and Portuguese since 1680.

It’s a very colorful place, touristy in the summer months, and the residents do love their old cars, which are seen around the town square in fairly well-preserved states. One restaurant uses an old Model A to attract customers (see after the break).

And there’s a Citroen Traction Avant with a tree planted in it (above, and below the break).

Most aren’t drivable; they are just parked to be part of the local color and, maybe, suggest the town’s feeling for history—or the fact that Uruguayans are quirky, interesting people with a sense of humor and respect for the past.

Here’s El Drugstore, the restaurant where some of the cars are parked.

I didn’t recognize all of these and suspect many are pre-war European cars.

Here’s the Ford Model A. You can get in it and have your picture taken at the table.

WWII scrap drives in this country really took a lot of prewar cars out of the picture. (As well as tin toys and anything made out of metal.) The war didn’t have much effect in South America so a lot more of these old classics, American and European, survived and a modest economy gives a lot of incentive to keep older cars running. Cuba is another great example of a country that had a strong American car presence until the isolation of Castro era cut off imports. If the choice is a ’57 Cadillac or a ’66 Yugo…..I’d stick with the Caddy even if I had to sit on a peach crate.